Leeds United: Chris Wood is NOT a £15m player

Chris Wood is a more than decent striker, but a striker worth £15 million – please, you’re having a laugh. I mean he’s had one stand-out season in the Championship.

And what a stand-out season it was. His 30 goals across all competitions, including a league-leading 27 in the Sky Bet Championship, made him only the sixth Leeds United player in the club’s history to hit that many goals in a single season of football. But £15 million value – I can’t get away from that figure.

We all know that the value of players in football is both subjective and hyper-inflated at times – well most of the time really. And here you have a striker scoring 27 goals for a side that finished 7th in a second-tier competition, those goals representing 44.3% of his sides total. But £15 million – come on that’s a lot of money.

But the media, such as local newspaper the Yorkshire Post (YP), are reporting that there is a quartet of clubs that value him at that eye-watering amount – Burnley already said to have had a £15 million bid rebuffed by Leeds. Alongside the Clarets, the YP say that: “West Bromwich Albion, Swansea City and Stoke City are also said to be considering bids for Wood before the transfer window closes at the end of the month.” Remember, that’s definitely going to be interest above £15 million already rejected from Burnley.

Upwards of £15 million for Chris Wood, a striker whose really only lit up the Sky Bet Championship when looking at league competition. £15 million plus – a big figure – and Chris Wood is definitely NOT a striker worth that much.

No, he’s worth more; in today’s football climate he is worth much more.

If Middlesbrough can stump up £15 million to take Britt Assombalonga to the Riverside, then surely Chris Wood, who has already scored this season, is worth more than that.

If Sunderland are said to be chasing Ross McCormack and willing to prise him away from Aston Villa, who’ll want a pretty penny in return, then surely Chris Wood is worth more than £15 million. I mean, McCormack’s biggest feat last season was not being able to climb over his house walls after catastrophic electric gate failure trapped him inside.

Quite simply, for Burnley to come in and offer £15 million to secure Chris Wood’s signature – well that’s an affront to common sense. Wood was the figurehead of a Leeds United side and is a striker with goals in him. Burnley have just sold Andre Gray to Watford for around £18, minus a sell-on fee to Gray’s former club Brentford.

Yet here are the Clarets trying to get Wood on the cheap, and they say Yorkshire folk are as tight as a duck’s arse in a waterfall – have you ever seen a duck sink?

Wood has said he is focused on the task ahead at Leeds United – a nice sense of loyalty in a football world where money usually talks, and bulls**t talks – his manager saying as much yesterday. About the fact he want’s to stay – not about walking bovine faeces.

Christiansen asked if he expects Wood to stay: "Yes. If you want to achieve something you don't sell your best players." #lufc

At the end of the day, a waving chequebook is a hard thing to turn aside for a Championship club when being waved by a Premier League side like Burnley. But like I said, Chris Wood is NOT a £15 million striker, he’s worth more than that. Every player has his price, look at PSG and the ridiculous Neymar transfer, but if Burnley, or any other Premier League side, want Wood then they had better get waving that chequebook a little harder.

About Author

Cynicism turned to optimism but without the woop woops and ringing bells. Leeds United supporter through thick and thin, more thin than anything recently. Write mainly about the Whites but turn my hand to other clubs. Lover of salted crisp sandwiches. Not a hipster.